We All Fall Down
by NightmaresAndLullabies
Summary: After 'Josh is Done', Drake falls after a girl who leads him down a life altering, dangerous and destructive path that tears apart the Nichols-Parker household.
1. Chapter 1

"Megan, please, tell me the truth."

Josh kneeled down, his sweaty palms squeezing his stepsister's bony shoulders as he searched for the usual malicious glean that shone whenever she pulled a prank. Instead, all he found was fright andsorrow.

"Sweet mother of Winfrey..." Josh shoved her away, with more force then he intended, as he frantically made his way towards the garage. He swung open the door to Audrey's minivan, climbed in and slammed his fist into the horn of the steering wheel.

"I need keys to drive this thing. KEYS!" Megan apparated besided the car, climbed in and reached across Josh and put the kings in ignition.

"Come on, boobe! This is serious!"

Josh pulled the car out of the garage, squeezing the steering wheel with is white knucles.

"Yeah, yeah, don't you think I get that? What hotel is he at?"

"The…" Megan opened up the distress text that Drake sent just minutes before.

"He said he's at the Super 8 Motel. Somewhere in Fresno."

Josh stopped the car. "Fresno? How in the world are we supposed to get to FRESNO in 20 minutes?"

Megan gave an icy glare. "Hmm, well I don't know. Maybe we could if you would get off your butt and use your fathead for once and actually TRY for a change, we could make it."

Josh slammed his foot against the metal pedal , the van squealing like a hellcat. Josh bared his teaeth as he swerved through the moonlit streets like a mad men.

"You call these past six months not trying? Well, let me tell you something, little girl - "

"That you're more of a 'little girl' than I am? Let me tell you something, Josh. You are the biggest coward I have ever the misfortune of encountering. These past six months? Completely, one hundred percent your fault. If you would've just tried to make things right, if you would've just stood up to Walter and Mom, if you would've stopped him, but no, you just cared soo much about yourself and you're stupid girlfriend and you're stupid GPA and you're stupid job – "

"Megan, don't you think I know that already, and maybe that's why we haven't even talked to eachother these past six months? Don't you think that I tried to reason with mom and dad? Don't you?"

Megan shook her head. She quietly turned on the GPS system and typed in the address of the motel her brother was once again destroying himself for that trashy slut and their crooked habit.

"5 hours, 42 minutes. With Friday night rushhour traffic, I'd say it'd take… maybe about 6, maybe 7 hours. We should get there by five am."

Josh grunted as fiddled with the radio, tuning it into some top 40 hits station playing the end to some Lady Gaga song. Suddenly, the sound of a young, male's jaded voice rasping sickly yet sexily over a garage punk- esque guitar riff.

"_Baby, please_

_A kilo_

_A gram_

_Just another ounce_

_Of your sweet bitter lovin'_

_It's the only thing that I need_

_To get me through the night" _

Josh, annoyed to hear his brother's voice on the radio again, quickly turned it to a country station. The van was filled with the sound of western-twang and break up songs as the estranged step siblings drove in moonlit silence.


	2. Six Months Prior

"Boob, we're leaving now. Get your butt out of bed!"

Drake mumbled incoherently as he folded his pillow over his head.

"Mmmnnnnnnnmmmauuughhh… liar, it's only like….. Two in the morning evening…."

"Drake. It's 7:44. We leave in," Megan checked her watch, "Thirty two seconds."

Drake bolted upright and kicked off his blankets frantically. "SHIT!" Drake stormed in to the bathroom and slammed the door behind him.

"Whoops, looks like you're time is UP! Guess Mr. Boobe is walking his butt to school once again. Smell ya later." Megan smirked as she sashayed down the hall.

Drake brushed his teeth furiously, so harsh he spat out blood in to the sink along with the stale Aquafresh he had left open on his now singely occupied bathroom, ever since Josh moved in to the guest room down the hall prior. Drake didn't even bother with combing his hair as he fished a pair of True Religions out of a heap of dirty laundry in the middle of his room. He absentmindedly pulled on his favorite blue Black Sabbath tee shirt and slipped on a pair of tattered Chuck Taylor's with no socks. He grabbed his now organized binder off the end table, attempting to jam it in his already crowded backpack. With all the textbooks in his back pack, it simply could not fit without bursting the seams. Agitated, he tucked it under his arm and raced out the front door.

Any other year of his life, Drake could care less about being late to school. However, losing his best friend in the middle of junior year left him with no other option but to study for the rest of the school year. Surprisingly, getting good grades in high school did not require any sort of intelligence. Drake had managed to pull his GPA up from a 1.56 to a 3.4 – not exactly stellar, but it was pretty decent.

He did not want to be late for the first day of the second semester of his senior year. It had finally dawned on him all these years that school was actually slightly important.

Drake nearly sprinted the three miles to the local high school, getting there in record time. Drake scrambled up the steps, and finally found his way to his homeroom. Fifteen minutes late.

"Sorry I'm late, Miss. Brewer." Drake smiled flirtatiously at his young twentysomething teacher, leaning on her desk, glad he remembered to put on some axe as he shook his messy auburn hair out of his chocolatetly brown eyes.

"Ahh,." She blushed and cleared her throat, "It's okay. Here's your new schedule" She plucked a piece of warm printer paper from a pile on her desk.

Drake took it, nodded his head and went to his seat.

Period 1

Chemistry 2

Hallander

Period 2

Algebra 3-4

Armstrong

Period 3

Advanced Placement Spanish

Jimenez

Period 4

Advanced Placement

World History

Casas

Period 5

High School English 3

Hayfer

Drake skimmed the schedule, everything looked good, he had all the classes he needed, Spanish came naturally to him and History was piece of cake, as for algebra and chem., he could easily get Craig or Eric to help him out, Enlgish -WAIT WHAT?

"Miss Brewer! What the hell?" Drake accidentally woke up half the sleeping homeroom, but he could care less.

The petite blonde's eyes widened. "Drake, please lower your voice. What seems to be the problem?"

Drake got up and brought the schedule to her desk. "Why am I taking that frickin class AGAIN? With…. It?" Miss Brewer took the schedule and examined it.

"Well, Drake, it's district policy that if a lowerclassmen does not receive a college eligible grade of a C or high, and does not retake it, they are required to retake it the second semester of their senior year."

Drake's mouth jaw dropped in disbelief. "But I worked hard for that D."

Miss Brewer shrugged her narrow shoulders. "I don't know what to tell you. I'm sorry, you'll have to talk to the counselor about it. I can't do anything about schedule changes."

Drake frowned, and as the bell rang, he took his backpack and went to first period Chem.

At least, if he did get stuck in tenth grade English, he could at least score with some slutty sophomores.


End file.
